This is the end of cheap purchases from Asia. New tariffs will hit Temu, Shein and AliExpress

From the beginning of July, EU regulations will enter into force, changing the method of calculating fees for shipments from outside the European Union.

The key change concerns the abolition of customs exemption for parcels worth up to EUR 150. In practice, this means that even small orders from platforms such as Temu, Shein or AliExpress will be subject to additional fees.

The new solution introduces a transitional flat-rate system. For two years – until July 1, 2028 – each shipment will be charged a fixed fee of EUR 3, i.e. approximately PLN 13. Only later will the system be tightened even more.

Why is the EU changing the rules?

The European Union explains the reform by a sharp increase in the number of small parcels and unequal competition among companies operating in the EU.

– So far, shipments worth up to EUR 150 imported from outside the European Union were completely exempt from customs duties. This is the so-called de minimis exemption – it was introduced in order not to burden the customs administration with handling millions of small parcels in which the customs duty would be pennies anyway. In practice, however, it became a loophole. It allowed the import of cheap products, mainly from China, without the burdens that European importers and stores were subject to. The European Commission decided that in the era of electronic customs declarations, the argument about the “excessive burden on the administration” lost its meaning. Basically, data on each shipment is already available digitally – explains Piotr Juszczyk, chief tax advisor at inFakt, in an interview with “Wprost”.

The expert emphasizes that the change is intended to equalize the conditions of competition between European sellers and global e-commerce platforms.

The shopping cart may become more expensive

The biggest change for consumers will be how fees are charged. Customs duties will no longer be assigned to the entire package, but to individual product categories.

– The fee is charged for each item of goods, i.e. for each customs code in the shipment. And an item is, as explained by KAS, one or more goods with the same tariff classification (customs code), description and origin. This means that three identical cotton T-shirts equal one item – EUR 3 – explains Piotr Juszczyk.

The problem occurs with more diverse orders.

– A cotton T-shirt, a wool sweater and a phone case are three different items and only 9 euros. What matters is not the number of pieces or lines on the invoice, but the number of different customs codes in the shipment. In the case of mixed, small baskets, the customs duty may exceed the value of the goods themselves – notes the expert.

This is only the first stage of changes in online trading

The new regulations do not end the changes in e-commerce from Asia. VAT will continue to be charged separately, and an additional handling fee is planned to be introduced from November 2026. Ultimately, the EU plans to completely abolish the threshold of EUR 150, which would mean charging a standard customs duty on the first euro of the value of the shipment.

– The change in force since July is not the end, but the first stage of a larger reform of the EU customs system. Polish companies selling in the EU may benefit from this, as the conditions of competition, which for years have been skewed in favor of non-EU platforms, are equalized to some extent – sums up the inFak expert.